N26 Review: Canada

Last year, I wrote the most comprehensive N26 review on the Internet, which has since been read by tens of thousands of travelers, digital nomads and online banking enthusiasts from every corner of the world. Yet as all-encompassing as it is, there’s still something missing: an N26 review specific to Canada. So here, I want to clear up a few misunderstandings for any Canadian users joining N26, and also demonstrate why N26 might be a better banking option for you than Scotiabank, RBC, BMO, CIBC or any of the other Canadian banks.

N26 Review – N26 is continuing to reach new markets at a rapid pace

I live in Canada, so most of my local transactions are done in Canadian dollars, not Euros. Does it make sense for me to have an N26 account that holds Euros?Yes! It’s an excellent question, but because all of N26’s transactions are done at the mid-market rate, any payment you make in any currency is treated the same as making a payment in your local currency. N26 doesn’t charge any conversion or exchange fees like other credit and debit cards do.

Can I withdraw money for free with my N26 Black when I’m in Canada?
Yes! As I demonstrate in my original N26 review, you get free ATM withdrawals worldwide with your N26 Black card, which includes ATMs in Canada. If you have the N26 free card, you pay a 1.7% fee on the total withdrawal amount.

To show you what I mean, here’s a screenshot showing the recent withdrawal of 7,220 Thai baht that I made from an ATM in Bangkok, alongside the real exchange rate from xe.com. Remember: any time you withdraw cash or make a foreign currency transaction with N26, you pay the mid-market rate and not a penny more.

Medical expenses up to an unlimited amount if you have a medical emergency while abroad (No deductible).

Emergency dental expenses up to a maximum of €250 (No deductible).

Expenses you incur due to a flight delay of 4 hours or longer, up to a maximum of €400 (No deductible).

Expenses you incur if your luggage arrives more than 6 hours late, up to a maximum of €400 (No deductible).

Reimbursement for a stolen mobile phone that was purchased with your N26 Black account, up to a maximum of €300 (€50 deductible).

Reimbursement for stolen cash if you get mugged up to 4 hours after withdrawing cash from an ATM with your N26 Black card, up to a maximum of €500 (No deductible).

Extended warranty of up to one additional year on items purchased directly with your N26 Black card and all payment methods associated with your card, such as a linked PayPal account, up to a maximum of €500 (€50 deductible).

Travel cancellation insurance on every trip before the trip commences, up to a maximum of €5,000 per trip (10-20% deductible).

How much does N26 cost?

N26’s fee structure is eight pages long and pretty dense, so here’s the important stuff:

Withdrawing foreign currency (any currency but Euros) anywhere in the world: Free for N26 Black and N26 Metal members, or 1.7% for N26 users on the free plan.

N26 Metal

N26 Metal includes all of the benefits of N26 Black listed above, plus dedicated (priority) customer support and, of course, the metal card itself. I recently wrote a 2,000-word N26 Metal review that goes deep into N26's super-premium card.

N26 Metal also comes with a growing number of exclusive partner offers and benefits, which rival the benefits of much more expensive premium credit cards like the American Express Platinum. These benefits include:

WeWork: 1 free day per month of co-working from any WeWork location around the world.

How To Sign Up For N26

With its impressive insurance policy, fee-free foreign cash withdrawals, and the app’s ease of use, I really couldn’t be happier as a member of N26 Black.

It’s made banking a lot easier and cheaper for me, and has solved a lot of the messy problems I had before (ie. expensive and vague travel/medical insurance policies, plus spending nearly $100/month on hidden ATM and currency exchange fees).

And you don't even need an N26 promo code to get started (Spoiler: N26 promo codes have gone extinct).

To sign up, you just need to provide standard personal information (name, date of birth, etc.) and a valid ID or passport.

Once you’ve signed up, verified your ID in the app and paired your smartphone (it takes 8 minutes total), they’ll send you your free MasterCard in the mail. Mine took just 2 days to arrive, and it comes in a pretty sleek package.

Comment below if you have questions about N26 and I’ll do what I can to answer them, or you can also reach N26’s support team via their app or website.

I am a Canadian living in France for a year. Is it possible to use this instead of setting up a traditional french account (which I understand is a pain)? I heard something about tax numbers being required for setting up n26, but of course I will not have one in France. Finally, are there any issues moving between a Canadian account, like CIBC, and N26? Thanks for time on this review!

How I Travel

Hey Andy – you shouldn’t have any problem getting set up in France. As a Canadian myself, I got my N26 Black account set up extremely easily while spending a few months in Berlin. You don’t need any tax number to get an account, just your Canadian passport.

As for transitioning from CIBC to N26, that won’t be a problem, either. You can easily use Transferwise to send money from your CIBC account to your N26 account, and once you have a balance in N26, you’re all set.

Hey Andy, you can definitely set up an N26 account in lieu of a traditional account in France. I can’t say this with 100% certainty, since I’m not based in France, but I’m pretty sure you won’t need a tax number to open your account. As for moving funds from CIBC or other Canadian banks to N26, you won’t have any problem. As a Canadian myself, I do this all the time, generally using TransferWise at a cost of about 1% of the total transfer (it takes about 2 business days). Here’s my review of TransferWise to give you a better idea of what it’s all about: //www.howitravel.co/transferwise-review/

Fred Parker

The new Stack MasterCard is a prepaid MasterCard charging zero foreign transaction fees, and no ATM fees are charged by Stack (ATMs in USA and Canada will charge a $2-4 fee). Bank ATMs in UK, Israel and other countries don’t charge any extra fees. If you don’t need all the inusrance offered by N26 Black, this would be a better (free!) option.

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